Continuing the posting of the NFL schedules for 2015, we have ESPN’s Monday Night Football slate for the season. It kicks off with a Week 1 doubleheader and for the first time, it’ll involve four NFC teams.
It seems appropriate that if Tim Tebow makes the Philadelphia Eagles, ESPN will have his first NFL game since 2013 as the Iggles take on the Atlanta Falcons then in the nightcap, Monday Night Football will carry Minnesota at San Francisco from the site of Super Bowl 50, Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, CA.
Other highlights of the season include Kansas City at Green Bay in Week 3, Detroit at Seattle in Week 4, Indianapolis at Carolina in Week 8, Houston at Cincinnati in Week 10, Dallas at Washington in Week 13 and Detroit at New Orleans in Week 15.
Mike Tirico, Jon Gruden and Lisa Salters will return for Monday Night Football in 2015.
Here’s the schedule plus a month-to-month synopsis by the ESPN’ers.
ESPN’s 2015 Monday Night Football Schedule
Eagles vs. Falcons and Vikings vs. 49ers in Season-Opening NFC Doubleheader on Sept. 14
MNF Highlights:
- Appearances by both Super Bowl teams – Seattle Seahawks vs. Lions (Oct. 5), and New England Patriots vs. Bills (Nov. 23).
- Seven teams have two appearances each – Baltimore Ravens, Cincinnati Bengals, Detroit Lions, Indianapolis Colts, New York Giants, Philadelphia Eagles and San Diego Chargers.
- MNF rivalry renewed – Redskins-Cowboys game on Dec. 7 at FedEx Field is their 17th MNF meeting, tying Raiders-Broncos for the most-played series in Monday night history. Washington vs. Dallas in 2014 ranked as ESPN’s third most-viewed MNF game ever.
- Inaugural Super Bowl rematch – During the NFL’s year-long celebration of the Super Bowl to commemorate Super Bowl 50, MNF features a rematch of the teams that played in the inaugural game in 1967 (Chiefs vs. Packers, Sept. 28). ESPN also has a rematch of Super Bowl III in week 2 (Jets vs. Colts, Sept. 21).
The 46th season of Monday Night Football will kick off on ESPN with a doubleheader Monday, September 14 – Philadelphia Eagles at Atlanta Falcons (7 p.m. ET) and Minnesota Vikings at San Francisco 49ers (10:15 p.m. / 7:15 p.m. PT). ESPN’s 17-game prime time schedule in 2015 will feature all 12 playoff teams from 2014, including both the defending Super Bowl champion New England Patriots and NFC champion Seattle Seahawks.
In the opener, DeMarco Murray – the NFL’s leading rusher for the Dallas Cowboys in 2014 – will make his regular-season debut for the Eagles against Matt Ryan and the Falcons at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta. The Eagles new-look roster under coach Chip Kelly also features Sam Bradford at quarterback.
In another matchup of NFC teams, the late game features Teddy Bridgewater and the Minnesota Vikings against Colin Kaepernick and the San Francisco 49ers in the first MNF game at Levi’s Stadium, which will host Super Bowl 50. Adrian Peterson is also likely to return to the Vikings’ backfield.
Play-by-play commentator Mike Tirico, analyst Jon Gruden and sideline reporter Lisa Salters will call the Eagles vs. Falcons, and the MNF games each week at 8:15 p.m. (kickoff at 8:30 p.m.). The commentators for the West Coast game will be announced at a later date.
All ESPN MNF games will be available on tablets, computers, Amazon Fire TV and Fire TV Stick, Apple TV, Chromecast, Roku, Xbox 360 and Xbox One via WatchESPN, which is accessible in more than 93 million households nationwide to fans who receive ESPN’s networks as part of their video subscription. Additional MNF “game around the game” content will be available throughout the day across ESPN platforms, including the Monday Night Countdown pregame show and post-game SportsCenter.
ESPN Deportes, ESPN’s 24-hour Spanish-language sports network, will also continue to offer a Spanish-language production of MNF games during the 2015 NFL season.
The week-by-week MNF schedule:
September: DeMarco’s debut; Luck vs. Revis; Aaron Rodgers Leads the Packers at Lambeau
- 14: Season-opening doubleheader – Eagles at Falcons and Vikings at 49ers.
- 21: Andrew Luck and the AFC South champion Indianapolis Colts host the New York Jets at Lucas Oil Stadium as shutdown corner Darrelle Revis makes his return to “Gang Green.”
- 28: In a rematch of the inaugural Super Bowl, Jamaal Charles and the Kansas City Chiefs travel to Lambeau Field to face NFL MVP Aaron Rodgers and the NFC North champion Green Bay Packers.
October: Big Ben vs. Philip Rivers; Giants vs. Eagles in Philly; Three MNF games out west
- 5: The Lions’ high-powered offensive led by Matthew Stafford and Calvin Johnson goes head-to-head against the NFC champion Seattle Seahawks and the “Legion of Boom” defense at CenturyLink Field, one of the NFL’s toughest venues.
- 12: Ben Roethlisberger and the AFC North champion Pittsburgh Steelers travel west to San Diego to face Philip Rivers and the Chargers.
- 19: NFC East rivals reunite as Eli Manning and the Giants battle Murray and the Eagles in Philly.
- Oct. 26: The third MNF game of the month out west pits Joe Flacco and the Baltimore Ravens against Carson Palmer and the Arizona Cardinals.
November: Luck vs. Cam; Rex’s Return to Patriots Place
- 2: Luck leads the Colts into Carolina to face Cam Newton and the NFC South champion Panthers in a matchup of former No. 1 overall picks.
- 9: Jay Cutler and Philip Rivers, once AFC West rivals, face one another again as the Bears play the Bolts.
- 16: Andy Dalton and the Cincinnati Bengals host J.J. Watt and the Houston Texans.
- 23: Thanksgiving week kicks off with a rivalry between old friends as Rex Ryan leads his Buffalo Bills – back on MNF for the first time since 2009 – against Bill Belichick, Tom Brady and the Super Bowl champion Patriots.
- 30: MNF returns to Cleveland for the first time since 2009 as the Ravens and Browns go head-to-head in what was the most competitive division in football a year ago.
December: Cowboys vs. Redskins yet again; Eli and Peyton – and Drew Brees too
- 7: Tony Romo and the Dallas Cowboys, looking to repeat as NFC East champs, go on the road to face the Redskins in Washington in the teams’ 17th MNF meeting.
- 14: Eli Manning and the Giants face the improved Miami Dolphins defense led by Ndamukong Suh in South Florida.
- 21: In a game that could impact playoff positioning in the NFC, Drew Brees and the New Orleans Saints host Stafford and the Lions at the Superdome.
- 28: Peyton Manning and the Denver Broncos host Dalton and the Bengals in a rematch of the 2014 MNF season finale (Cincinnati won 37-28). The game extends Denver’s NFL-best streak of 24 consecutive seasons playing on MNF (1992-present).
ESPN’s 2015 Monday Night Football Schedule
Preseason Date Time (ET) Teams Aug. 20 8 p.m. Buffalo Bills vs. Cleveland Browns Aug. 24 8 p.m. Cincinnati Bengals vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers Regular Season Sept. 14 7 p.m. Philadelphia Eagles vs. Atlanta Falcons 10:15 p.m. Minnesota Vikings vs. San Francisco 49ers Sept. 21 8:15 p.m. New York Jets vs. Indianapolis Colts Sept. 28 8:15 p.m. Kansas City Chiefs vs. Green Bay Packers Oct. 5 8:15 p.m. Detroit Lions vs. Seattle Seahawks Oct. 12 8:15 p.m. Pittsburgh Steelers vs. San Diego Chargers Oct. 19 8:15 p.m. New York Giants vs. Philadelphia Eagles Oct. 26 8:15 p.m. Baltimore Ravens vs. Arizona Cardinals Nov. 2 8:15 p.m. Indianapolis Colts vs. Carolina Panthers Nov. 9 8:15 p.m. Chicago Bears vs. San Diego Chargers Nov. 16 8:15 p.m. Houston Texans vs. Cincinnati Bengals Nov. 23 8:15 p.m. Buffalo Bills vs. New England Patriots Nov. 30 8:15 p.m. Baltimore Ravens vs. Cleveland Browns Dec. 7 8:15 p.m. Dallas Cowboys vs. Washington Redskins Dec. 14 8:15 p.m. New York Giants vs. Miami Dolphins Dec. 21 8:15 p.m. Detroit Lions vs. New Orleans Saints Dec. 28 8:15 p.m. Cincinnati Bengals vs. Denver Broncos
And we’ll conclude with the Thursday Night Football schedule.
